NewUser
1/2 ton status
started out with this K5 i bought last March...heres how it looked when i got it
bought it for $1200(down from the $2000 asking price) it had a few issues mainly 2 spun rod bearings and a busted tranny(bellhousing had been welded at some point from one side to the other)...didnt know the tranny was bad when i got it just thought it had "sluggish" shifts
put new tires on it the day after i got it and drove it like that for a month(no louod knocking and had great oil pressure)
starting to look better:
I decided to put a new engine in it so i bought a reman one thru work for $1000 and had it payroll deducted
drove it with new engine and bad tranny for about 3 months then decided i wanted to go drag racing (yeah right what was i thinking?) so i pulled the new engine and sold the rest for $500 to a buddy who was gonna cut it up and make a truggy out of it(D60/14BFF, doubler, etc)....well it sat in his backyard fro the day i sold it to him til i went over one day and asked if he wanted to sell the tires to put on my 89 XJ(Cherokee for you non-Jeep types), he said he would sell me the tires for $500 and throw the rest of the truck in for free so with it being tax time i said sure why not
bought it back and decided since i had the money i was gonna do it right, new motor, new tranny, all new accessories, etc....this is where it gets bad
bought a motor from another friend who had it in his dirt track car for 6 races...was told it was a 350 blockj bored .030 with a forged 327 crank for $800(with alot of extra "bling" goodies thrown in) so i bought it....had another buddy rebuild and strengthen a TH350 to put back in it for me for $400
got the motor together and cleaned up and installed
went to fill it with antifreeze while my buddy was hooking up the exhaust, he said he heard something dripping into the oil pan......yep you guessed it...block was junk
come to find out my "stroker race car" engine was actually a 68 327 bored .040 with a 307 crank turned .030 on rods and mains....after heated discussion my money was refunded
this is what a big gash in a cylinder wall looks like
so a replacement engine was located and for a measly $100 i got a bone stock 350 4 bolt main with standard bore and standard sized rods and mains with only about 60K on it.....after cleaning every single little nook and cranny it was assembled last night and installed tonight...all thats left is hooking up exhaust, torque convertor bolts, adjusting the valves, and running one final wire for my Windstar fans
here are the pics of the final product after a month of one bad luck problem after the other
sorry for the long post....ill keep it updated as i go(which will be as money allows) future plans call for a shackle flip in the back, 4 inch springs in front, new gears(3.08's suck with 33's) detroit locker in the rear, winch, bumpers, and maybe a few other items.....i just want something the whole family can pile in and spend the day riding thru the mountains and not worry about breaking down
bought it for $1200(down from the $2000 asking price) it had a few issues mainly 2 spun rod bearings and a busted tranny(bellhousing had been welded at some point from one side to the other)...didnt know the tranny was bad when i got it just thought it had "sluggish" shifts
put new tires on it the day after i got it and drove it like that for a month(no louod knocking and had great oil pressure)
starting to look better:
I decided to put a new engine in it so i bought a reman one thru work for $1000 and had it payroll deducted
drove it with new engine and bad tranny for about 3 months then decided i wanted to go drag racing (yeah right what was i thinking?) so i pulled the new engine and sold the rest for $500 to a buddy who was gonna cut it up and make a truggy out of it(D60/14BFF, doubler, etc)....well it sat in his backyard fro the day i sold it to him til i went over one day and asked if he wanted to sell the tires to put on my 89 XJ(Cherokee for you non-Jeep types), he said he would sell me the tires for $500 and throw the rest of the truck in for free so with it being tax time i said sure why not
bought it back and decided since i had the money i was gonna do it right, new motor, new tranny, all new accessories, etc....this is where it gets bad
bought a motor from another friend who had it in his dirt track car for 6 races...was told it was a 350 blockj bored .030 with a forged 327 crank for $800(with alot of extra "bling" goodies thrown in) so i bought it....had another buddy rebuild and strengthen a TH350 to put back in it for me for $400
got the motor together and cleaned up and installed
went to fill it with antifreeze while my buddy was hooking up the exhaust, he said he heard something dripping into the oil pan......yep you guessed it...block was junk
come to find out my "stroker race car" engine was actually a 68 327 bored .040 with a 307 crank turned .030 on rods and mains....after heated discussion my money was refunded
this is what a big gash in a cylinder wall looks like
so a replacement engine was located and for a measly $100 i got a bone stock 350 4 bolt main with standard bore and standard sized rods and mains with only about 60K on it.....after cleaning every single little nook and cranny it was assembled last night and installed tonight...all thats left is hooking up exhaust, torque convertor bolts, adjusting the valves, and running one final wire for my Windstar fans
here are the pics of the final product after a month of one bad luck problem after the other
sorry for the long post....ill keep it updated as i go(which will be as money allows) future plans call for a shackle flip in the back, 4 inch springs in front, new gears(3.08's suck with 33's) detroit locker in the rear, winch, bumpers, and maybe a few other items.....i just want something the whole family can pile in and spend the day riding thru the mountains and not worry about breaking down
Last edited:
